Apparatus for cleaning bottles and like containers



Feb. 13, 1923. 1 1,445,359.

. H. SCARBOROI JGHET AL. v

APPARATUS FOR CLEANING BOTTLES AND LIKE CONTAINERS. v FILED sen 16,1919-2 SHEET$-SHEET Hem-5 5 cal-b uruuqh "ATTORNEY.

Feb. 13, 1923.

H. SCARBOROUGH ET AL.

APPARATUS FOR CLEANING BOTTLES AND LIKE CONTAINERS.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

FILED SEPT \6, 1919 vwm owk Her-111. Scarborough 1?1 RD DSTE'L.

@M'o b1 10 o and JOHN R.

Patented Feb; 1

arrAnarus FOR oLEANI To all whom,-

Be it known tha States, and res Improvements in Bottles and clear, andexact The primary 0b impr of cl thermore the a internal washing whilethe bottles or in an exterior cleans With idents '5 county of Milwaukeesin, have invented ce like C hereby declare that ove the stand eansingbottles, desired result the a this primary rminor ob DOSTAL ASSIGNApplication filed September I6, 1919. Serial No. 324,080.

ontaine ject of the-invention is ard or well n solution object jects 'whubm In the accompanying drawings Figure 1 rep nal sectional view of abottle cleanin accordance with o F1 re 2 is a take c m the pla ure 1,and I .Figure 3 is an tional view thro cleansingsolution alkaline n ughe 'means used for ntion the numeral able size "and sha R. DOSTAL, 01 MILOR TO SAID SCARBORO BOROUGH e United Cleaning and we do known means and1n arriving at this her gaseous fluid. Fur- ,and expulsion of thecarried out the like are s g liquid.

in view, as well ch will become erged resents a verticallongitudithrough one 'end portion ur invention.-

enlarged detail ver one end of a b injecting air t embodiment o l denotpe for Which es-a tan g machine constructed in vertical transversesection ne of the line 2 -2 of Figtical secottle and hereinto. f our inkof suit tomary bottle S are end of the tank bottle enga a like nu th III81'] move 1011 'carried beneath th the tank 1, it is filled k inletmouth 6 and th cap 5. As

- accompanyin hung from posit sidewall of the anner. E

mber of e other side.

0 project into on he stems 7 are disposed in the bottl be ladjacent thebottoms W1 e seen from l y upwardl As soon as the herein g the s in thehe tank 1.

for

sam

11 tance by th g dr e bar ion a fram ina machine of t riving sproc areshown in ends or in ach of the bar ging ca h of the conv y to receiositipn.

onveyer. The bottles agment with the ca from an inverted to rein andsucces mg 1s procured submerged the inner e of the bottles B.

such length that when heir est

Figure eye v mouth of e level of ther rough before men eaned ame.

y said a agitating e from the any desired mann e arrangement sho awings.I

10 chann upported t The initial eled as surface of tank 1. Th zontallyand arever- N G BOTTLES AND LIKE CONTAINERS;

his character, the h the solution on 2, the same benumber of supkeFigure 1 atone.

any other, desired s has n d to one side and a number of inlet ends willthe latter. As

1 the stems on the r 2 extend verstretches of. the are thus retained ps5 as they are an upright posieach bottle is the solution in ewiththrough the ports 9 in the tioned the botb y agitating the emptying yand each having the bottles lkaline solution in the solution and bottlesmay wn in the n this connecat 11, is each ophrough slotted er for ineseframe ears 12 and pins 13. An injector header 14 raised injectorheade'r,the flared mouths of is slidably supported with respect to the thealternate bottles are aligned with the frame bars by means of crossmembers nipples 18 ofthe header and thessupporting 15 and 16, theopposite ends of which are frame bars 10 thereof are lowered to engage5- movable in said channels 11. The members .the aligned nipplesandmouths. The com- 15 and 16 are connected by means of a plupressedgaseous fluid from the source of L rality'of parallel header pipes 17,said pipes supply 20 thereof may be then injected into being disposed inthe direction of movethe bottles whose months 6 are engaged by ment'ofthe endless conveyer 2 and over the the nipples to agitate the solutiontherein 10 tracks 8. and gradually expel the same through ports Each ofthe header-pipes 17 has a num- 9 in the cap 5. This expulsion takesplace ber'of outlet nipples 18 adapted to co-operas the header 14 ismoved along with the ate with'the fiared mouths 6. The cross conveyer 2.

' member 15 of the injector header is hollow At the limit of movement ofsaid header ".15 and is' connected through a pipe or flexible in thisdirection, it and the frame bars 10 tube 19 with a blower or anysuitable comare raised by the action of the cam 24, wherew pressormachine 20 for supplying air or a upon the empty or partially emptybottles gaseous fluid under pressure. The member will be refilled owingto the fact that they 15 being in communication with each of the aresubmersed below the level of the solu- 20 header pipes 17, thecompressed air or the tion in the tank 1. The injector header while likewill be conveyed to each of the nipples in a raised position and out ofengagement 18 and when the same are connected with with the, mouths 6'isreturned to its initial the mouths 6, compressed air or the like willposition, it being moved in a direction opbe-injected into certain ofthe bottles B. .posite the movement of the lower stretch It will benoticed that the nipples are of the cenveyer 2 by the rocking of thespaced such a distance apart that only the lever 27 j alternate mouths6, below the injector header Thereafter the header is again Powered to15 will be engaged, and consequently every engage its nipples ith themouths 6 of the other bottle will be supplied with combottles which werenext adjacent those pre-' i 30 pressed air or the like gaseous fluidused for viously acted upon. The agitation and exagitating and expellingthe cleansing solupulsion of the cleansing fiuid contained in tiontherein. The nipples are moved into these bottles is carried out in thesame manand out'of engagement. with the months 6 ner as with the firstmentioned bottles. Fur- .by the reciprocation of the frame bars 10,thermore the operations preformed oneach 35 and the same being elevatedand lowered by of the two sets of bottles is repeated many means of hellcrank levers 21 connected times while the same 'are passed beneaththerewith by links 22, a crank 23, and a the header '14. In other wordseach bottle is cam 24. The cam is rotated in any presuccessively filledwith cleansing solution, 'ferred manner to rock the bell cranks *21,'then emptied of such solution and again 4 the corresponding arms .ofeachbeing confilled, these acts being continued until it is nectedtogether'by a rod 25. determined that the bottle is thoroughly When theseveral nipples are engaged clean. k a a with their 'respective mouths6. the header -After the bottles have beenithoroughly f 14 is movedlongitudinally in the direction cleaned by the agitation of thecleansing 45 of movement of the lower stretch of the con-' solutiontherein and the successive emptying veyer 2 for a predetermineddistance; and and refilling, they are moved by the conwhen this limit isreached and the mouths veyer 2 frombeneath th injector member 14disengaged by the elevation of the frame and carried'on through the tank1 or other.

bars 10, the injector header 14 is returned to parts of the machineconnected therewith.

850 its initial pos'tio'n. This m ovement is also For instance inthe'portion of th e -tank 1 1 15 performed through the medium of a cam26, not shown may be located means for washsaid cam actuating a lever 27having one end ing or rinsing tlj bottles both inside and linked as at28 to the-cross member out with clean water or a solution different Theoperation of our invention is subfrom that used for, soaking thebottles. Fur- 55 stantially as follows: As thegupwardly ex-' thermorethe same mechanism as is illustending stems '7 pass along'the top of thetrated in he several figures of= 'the drawings tank 1, the operatorplacesothe bottles to be and usedgforv forcing air under'pressure' towashed 'thereon;.the movement of the endthe several immersed bottles maybe used less conveyer 2-be'ing continuous, said bottles fwbith onlyslight alterations to supply water 60 will eventuall be brought intoengagement or'other liquid tothe interior offthe bottles with, the tracs 8 and thus held upon the as theygare carried to the upper stretch of jconveyor; Thereafter the bottles are filled the convey r or while theyare in an inverted with cleansing solution by submersion thereposition.-jLikewise various other changes in, ;and disposed in upright position.may be made in the manner of carrying out "6-5 As the filled bottlesmove beneath the the broad-principle of our invention, it being 131understood that the applicants are not limited tothe illustratedstructure except in so far as the following claims are limitations.

We claim:

1. In a container cleaning machine, a tank for holding a cleansingliquid, a conveyor for receiving a series of containers, immersing themsuccessively in the tank and conveying them in the tank While immersed,an injector head connected with a source of compressed gaseous fluid andmeans for reciprocating the head to alternatelv establish and interruptcommunication between said source and the containers successively asthey are conveyed through the liquid.

2. In a container cleaning machine, a tank for holding a cleansingliquid, a conveyor passing through the liquid in the tank, a series ofhollow stems connected with the conveyor, means for securing thecontainers to the conveyor with, the stems projecting into the interiorof said containers, means for supplying a gaseous fluid under pressureand means for alternately connecting and disconnecting said supply meanswith said stems successively while they are traveling through theliquid.

3. In a container cleaning machine,'a container conveyor, a tank adaptedto contain cleansing liquid in which said conveyor operates to fill thsubmersion, I and means for intermittently introducing gaseous fluidinto said containers to expel theliquid there-from while they are beingconveyed through the tank, said last named means including an injectorhead and cam actuated means for reciproeating the same to successivelyestablish and interrupt communication with alternate series ofcontainers.

4. In a container cleaning machine, a container conveyor, cleansingliquid in which said conveyor operates to fill the containers withliquid by submersion, a series of 'hollow stems carried by the conveyor,means for securing the cone containers with liquid by a tank adapted tocontain tainers on the conveyor with the stems in relatively fixedposition within the containers, a fluid injector head, means for placingthe head into communication with certain of said stems when the samereach a predetermined point in their travel through the liquid, meansfor moving the head with the stems a predetermined distance, means forretracting J the head 'to interrupt the communication with said stems,said second mentioned means being operative for returning the head toits initial position for engagement with the next adjacent series ofstems and means for supplying gaseous fluid through said injector headand stems to expel the liquid from the containers.

5. In a machine of the class described, a container conveyor, a tankadapted to contain a cleansing liquid in which the conveyor operates tofill the containers with liquid by submersion, a series of injectornozzles carried by the conveyor, and each having a plurality of vents,means for Se curing the nozzles in relatively fixed position'within therespective containers, an injector head' having a plurality (of outlets,means for moving the head to place said outlets in communication withcertain alternate containers to connect the nozzles therewith contamersa predetermined distance, means for disconnecting'the head from saidnozzles, said second mentioned means being operative for returning thehead to its initial position and placing the outlets thereof incommunication with the nozzles disposed between the nozzles firstengaged, and means for supplying gaseous fluid under pressure to saidinjector head. p

In testimony that weclaim the foregoing we have-hereunto set our handsat Milwaukee, in the county of Milwaukee'and State of Wisconsin.

HENRY SCARBOROUGH! JOHN R. DOSTAL.

